A Most Unexpected Love
by tornbetween
Summary: (summer before 7th yr) Mione's parents wish to celebrate thier 20th anniversary in Africa, so its arranged for Mione to stay at the Malfoy Mannor all summer. She finds MANY things have changed...will she be one of them? (volds. gone) ch. 9 up. please rH
1. Unexpected News

A Most Unexpected Love  
  
Chapter 1: Unexpected News  
  
Hermione laid in her bed awake with her eyes shut. She could hear the breeze blowing in to her room from her open window. She could hear the soft thud of her cat, Crookshanks, landing on the floor from its favorite spot on her bookshelf. The soft clicking of the clock on her nightstand was like a rhythmic beat to the song of time. Everything was so quiet, yet so full of noise... and this was just the way she liked it.  
  
It was morning time. Hermione's favorite part of the day. Every morning before her mother would rise from her slumber to wake her, she would lay with her eyes shut, just listening to the sounds of the morning world.  
  
A sneeze coming from down the hall signaled the awakening of her mother. Her mother was dreadfully allergic to cats, but she saw how much Hermione loved that cat when she brought it home at the end of her third year at Hogwarts. Her mother had no choice but to allow the mangy cat to stay.  
  
Hermione knew the routine. Every morning, her mother would trudge down the stairs to make breakfast (she, unlike Hermione, was not a morning person), set the table for her and her father, then walk back upstairs to wake the rest of her sleeping family. But this morning, she did not hear the sound of her mother thumping down the stairs, instead, they seemed to be coming toward her.  
  
"Hermione dear. Wake up. I have some...erm... important news to tell you."  
  
Hermione opened her eyes. "Yes mother?"  
  
Her mother looked rather hesitant, but decided to continue any way.  
  
"Well dear... as you know it is you father's and I's 20th anniversary tomorrow." Her mother was speaking rather quickly, as if she thought that the faster she spoke, the less angry Hermione's reaction would be. "And seeing how we see you so infrequently during the school year, we always try to spend as much time with you during the summer as possible. But, obviously, you are growing up and your father and I believe that you're old enough to understand why this is so important to us..."  
  
Hermione was confused. "Wait. Why what is so important to you?"  
  
"Oh....right." Her mother seemed a bit disappointed that her speech she had practiced to the point of memorization didn't go quite as the planned. Never-the- less, she carried on in her hurried tone of voice. "Hermione, your father and I want to make this anniversary special. So he arranged for us to take a once in a life time safari through the jungles of Africa."  
  
"Wow mother!! That's great!! You have got to bring me back something. What about -."  
  
"Wait Hermione. But what you don't know... is that... well..."  
  
"Yes mother...? Go on." Hermione was quite impatient to know what her mother was so nervous about telling her."  
  
After a short pause, her mother hurried on in a tone that was even faster than before. "Although we have led you to believe we were quite ignorant about the wizarding world all of these years, we were really a bit more informed than you think. In act, up until about 18 years ago, we were actually completely different people...you see Hermione dear... well... you... you aren't really a Granger."  
  



	2. Some Shocking Surprises

A Most Unexpected Love  
  
Chapter 2: Some Shocking Surprises  
  
"...you see Hermione dear...well...you.. you aren't really a Granger."  
  
Hermione was shocked. What was her mother talking about? Did that mean she was adopted? Thousands of questions swirled through her mind in the few moments her mother had paused for a breath of air.  
  
"You see honey, before you were born, we were actually....the.. well..." Her mother paused as if she was trying to swallow a particularly vile potion. "We were the... _Regnars _sweetie." (AN: Granger spelled backwards...get it?) Her mother had obviously seen the look of disgust on her daughter's face because she quickly continued. "Yes Hermione dear I know. I wasn't particularly fond of the name myself...but it was a small price to pay for your father..." Her mother smiled affectionately.  
  
Hermione drew a sharp breath of air. Could this mean she had endured all those years of taunting from Draco and his little friends for nothing? Hermione had to know. "Wait! So does this mean I'm not a muggle born?"  
  
Her mother gave a small smile. "That's right sweetie. Sorry about all of this secrecy but it will all be explained. Any way honey, when we were still connected to the wizarding world and known as the Regnars, we were rather close to a particular wizard couple. Like your father and I, they had no children and had just recently married. In fact, I had known this woman for many, many years," Her mother gave a small chuckle. "You really might have called her my best friend. We had known each other all the way back to our Hogwarts days."  
  
Once again, the shock on Hermione's face must have been rather obvious.  
  
"Yes dear I did attend Hogwarts. Though, unlike you, I was sorted into Ravenclaw. I must admit, I was _quite_ surprised when you were put into Gryfindor. Her mother let a smile escape her lips. "But that's beside the point. What im trying to tell you is... this woman married a good man... a good man gone bad." Now that the worst part of the speech was over, her mother's pace slowed down a bit. "When this woman began to sense the changes that were happening in this man, she became...well.. whats the word.. . sensitive other to other things as well. Some how, she began to receive visions...and they were not of good things. She was quite worried about this, as seeing visions is not a thing to be taken lightly. So she kept them to her self, telling not even her husband. Luckily, I confided in her that I was thinking about having a child, which was in fact you," Her mother looked at Hermione affectionately. "When I told her this she couldn't possibly let me bring a child into the world her visions were showing her, so she warned us.. and pleaded with us to leave the wizarding world and never turn back. We begged her and her husband to flee with us... but for some reason she had already decided to stay there with her husband... Your father and I ..well... we listened...and left without them... And it was a good thing we did because soon after we left, and evil man named Voldemort began to rise to power...and the war began. This woman's husband got caught up in the war... though... he was fighting on the wrong side. She never did tell her husband about you... even though she too ended up having a child. But by then we had fled to the muggle world, changed our last name to Granger, and well... disappeared."  
  
Hermione was stunned silent. This was way to much information way to early in the morning.  
  
"A little bit before you were born, Voldemort was put into submission by a tiny child named Harry Potter, as you well know." This time both Hermione and her mother smiled. "...and some years later you received your letter from Hogwarts.. your father and I both agreed that if was safe for you to go.. and that you did... Years came and went..and with those years so did Voldemort's second rise and fall to power... which again, seeing as how you were deeply involved... I'm sure you know well about.."  
  
Hermione could only nod.  
  
"And... now that everything is really over and all of the remaining death eaters are in Azkaban, this woman has finally contacted me...after all these year... I must admit I was beginning to think she had forgotten me..." A small, sad smile surfaced on her mother's lips. She no longer seemed to be looking at Hermione, rather somewhere over he shoulder and through her pillow. After a few moments, her mother seemed to snap out of her trip down memory lane and continued on with her story.  
  
"Oh...yes... where was I... ahh... like I was saying... this woman has finally contacted us and confirmed it was safe to return to the wizarding world." A rather bashful smile appeared on her mothers face. "Though... as it turns out... your father and I rather _like_ it here... living like muggles... its rather... _rejuvenating_ if you ask me... But _you_ on the other hand. Have got to be _dying_ to spend some time in the wizarding world... outside of school of course.  
  
Although Hermione had never really mentioned it, her mother was right. She really _did_ want to see how other wizarding families. Besides the weasley's that is, lived an average day. True, she loved the weasley's deeply...one in particular... but she yearned for a fresh perspective on the wizarding world. It was funny how mothers knew so much. Hermione slowly nodded her head, a little afraid what was coming next.  
  
"Yes... I thought so... So to _try_ and help make up for all these years of secrecy, I have arranged for you to stay the summer with this old friend of mine while your father and I celebrate our anniversary in Africa. She really is a great lady Hermione... snd I _do_ believe she has a son who is about your age I think.  
  
Her mother looked greatly relived to have finally gotten all of this off her chest. In fact, she looked almost... _ecstatic_. Though Hermione wasn't quite as happy as her mother, the idea of spending the summer with another wizarding family besides the weasleys did sound rather appealing. Plus, they seemed to have a son about her age who would keep her company.  
  
"Alright mother. Sounds great! By the way, what's this lady's name you're speaking so greatly about?  
  
"Oh!" her mother replied. "I didn't mention it?" Hermione shook her head, waiting for her mothers reply.  
  
"Well honey, her name is Narcissa. Narcissa Malfoy." 


	3. Changes For The Better

Disclaimer: none of the characters are mine so don't sue me..  
  
A Most Unexpected Love  
  
Chapter 3: Changes For the Better  
  
"Well Honey...her name is Narcissa....Narcissa Malfoy."  
  
"Are you off your rocker mom?? You can't possibly expect me to stay the rest of my summer with those foul Malfoys!!" Of course, that's not what Hermione really said. A feeble "...Oh..." was all she could muster up.  
  
"You're leaving tomorrow at 8 am sharp. Now im going downstairs to fix breakfast. It will be ready in a half hour....pancakes sound ok?"  
  
"...Yea... pancakes...great..." Unfortunately, Hermione didn't think that sounded as enthusiastic as it was meant to. Her mother walked towards her door to leave  
  
"Hermione... I _do_ love you...It really was all for your own good...you do forgive me...don't you?"  
  
"Yes mother....of course I forgive you." Hermione's mother gave her one last smile before she walked down the hallway. Realizing she was still in bed, Hermione jumped out from under her sheets and began to do the thing she did best (besides studying that is)...which of course is to freak out!  
  
"How could she do this to me?!?" She said to her self. "Does she really not realize how much I loathe, hate, and utterly _despise_ the Malfoys?? And especially Draco!!" Suddenly, a more sensible side of Hermione spoke.  
  
"You're right Hermione, she _doesn't_ realize it. You do remember how careful you've been to hide the fact you get teased from your mother..._don't_ you?"  
  
And she was right. She_ had_ been rather careful to hide that aspect of her life from her mother. It wasn't her mother's fault. Had she known what a nasty little prat Narcissa Malfoy's son had grown up to be, she definitely would not have made this horrible arrangement in the first place...Suddenly Hermione realized that somehow she was moving. It took a few moments to register that she was pacing... which was something she only did when she was on the verge of a mental breakdown. She had to calm down. She sat down on the edge of her bed and slowly drew in a big breath of air. After holding it in for a few, she slowly let it escape through the tiny hole in her lips. This process always helped to clear her mind.  
  
"There," she said. "All better." Hermione began to relax. It was now when Hermione's sensible side stepped in. "Listen Hermione. Let's be reasonable. The plans have already been made. There's nothing you can do. And besides, you don't really want to spoil your parent's special anniversary... do you?  
  
Again, Hermione's sensible side was right. She was acting rather immature about this whole matter. It was settled. She was going whether she liked it or not. With that matter settled she slipped her feet into her orange fuzzy slippers and walked down to breakfast.  
  
Funny how time works. When you are looking forward to something, time feels that its fit to pass as slow as it wants. But as soon as you dread a coming event, the say seems to pass as if someone had a giant remote and pressed the fast forward button.  
  
And that was exactly how Hermione's day went. By the time she had finished breakfast it was already past noon. Realizing that she practically had her whole room to pack, she grudgingly climbed the flight of stairs to finish packing.  
  
It was nearly 11:30 by the time she had arranged and rearranged her clothing to fit in her trunks. After doing a half-hearted job at brushing her teeth (which was not something she usually did... after all, her parents were dentists), she changed into her pajamas and fell asleep.  
  
The next morning she was awaken by her mother at 7:00 am.  
  
Hermione was frantic. "Mother!!!! This only leaves me 1 hour to get ready!!" Even though it was the Malfoys, she still wanted to be on time for a good first impression.  
  
"Sorry honey. Your father and I were up late last night packing. We just barely got up our selves. If you want you can-"  
  
But Hermione didn't hear the rest of what her mother was saying. She had slammed the door shut. She really didn't have time to hear what her mother was saying. This was really unlike her, but with all that had happened in the last day, who could be normal?  
  
"Good thing I picked out my outfit last night," she said to no one in particular. Luckily, last night she had settled upon wearing a black halter top with dark blue jeans and black flip flops, so she didn't have to pick out her outfit. She admired her self in her mirror. She must admit, she _did_ look all right. Though she was slow to mature, when she finally did, it was well worth the wait. Hermione did not really need make up, she had natural beauty... and tons of it. Her hair was no longer bushy and uncontrollable, but now fell in long, soft waves that beautifully framed her face. Though many of her friends had noticed the change in Hermione (one red-headed boy in particular), she was blissfully unaware of it...which made her all the more beautiful. But now, even Hermione was beginning to notice how pretty she was becoming. Realizing she was on quite a short time schedule, she cut her mirror session short.  
  
She hurriedly brushed her teeth through on some light mascara and lip gloss and brushed her hair. By 7:50 her trunks were by the door and she was ready to go. She was just about to sit down to wait by the door when the bell rang. "Wow. She's early." Hermione loved a person who knew how to manage their time Maybe this wasn't going to be so bad after all. Hermione's mother ran from to kitchen to greet their guest. When the door was opened, Hermione was very surprised with what she saw. The lady who was standing in the door way was not the tight-lipped woman she remembered from the quidditch world cup back in her fourth year. Instead, she was greeted by a smiling woman, who possessed so much of the natural beauty Hermione had herself.  
  
Hermione's mother was the first to speak. "Narcissa!! My God..._look_ at you! You look great!"  
  
"Thank you! And look at _you_!!!" A huge smile was on both the friends faces." Oh... my old friend its been too tong... almost 20 years...."  
  
The two friends embraced in a huge hug and left Hermione standing there...feeling just a tad awkward.  
  
Narcissa finally noticed the pretty girl who was standing there and ended the embrace. "And _you_ must be Hermione! You're more beautiful than I ever imagined."  
  
Hermione's cheek turned a slight shade of pink. Narcissa didn't seem to remember their encounter at the world quidditch cup. Hermione supposed it was better this way. "Thank you. Pleased to meet you Mrs. Malfoy."  
  
Narcissa's radiant smile momentarily turned to a frown. "Nonsense, We will have none of that Mrs. business...Please..." The smile returned to her face. "Call me Narcissa."  
  
Hermione gave a small chuckle. "Alright then. Pleased to meet you _Narcissa_."  
  
Now it was Narcissa's turn to chuckle. "Now that's more like it! Well... I hate to cut the visit short but we really must be going. I left Draco at home asleep. If he wakes up and I'm not there he might be worried."  
  
With the mention of Draco's name, Hermione was quickly reminded of what lay before her. She pushed the thought out of her head and gave her mother a long hug goodbye and a quick kiss. "Love ya mom."  
  
"I love you too honey... see you at Christmas!"  
  
"Definitely." Hermione walked down the driveway with her suitcases in tow, toward Narcissa's car. As Narcissa started the engine, Hermione turned and gave her mother one last wave as she backed out of the driveway and toward her new home for the summer.  
  
Millions of thought swirled through her head. What will the house be like? Has Draco changed? (she doubted it) Will the summer be as bad as she expected? She decided the answers to the questions didn't matter any way. After all, they would all be answered when she got there.  
  
"Man..." she thought to herself. "What am I getting my self into?" 


	4. The First Meeting

AN: Hey guys I'm back from Fresno (obviously)! Some of you guys wanted me to tell ya how I did so... on Saturday was the semi finals. The people with the top 9 fastest times move on to Sunday. Luckily I got 9th (hehe) with a time of 12.95 (incase yall forgot were talking about the 100 meter dash here) which is okay for me (but since I'm a girl its good) but not my best...so I got to move on to Sunday. Then on Sunday the top 3 fastest times go on to Oregon (which is a state in the US if anyone doesn't know) to compete in the final final for the National Junior Olympics... you would think one cant go from 9th to 3rd in one day...and your right...lol... I got 9th place again... and it was my worst time (13.14 which is still good but not really for me) ever since 9th grade NCS (which is another big competition) ... but yea... its all good and I'm really glad that you all liked my story.... I hope I can keep ya liking it....thanks for your reviews!! Keep em coming!! ..lol  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own anything... of course its all JKs...  
  
A Most Unexpected Love  
  
Chapter 4: The "First" Meeting  
  
When they first began the trip, the ladies busied themselves talking about any and everything they could think of. Her mother was right about Narcissa being a nice lady. Hermione found that it was quite easy to open up to her. More than once, she found herself wondering how Malfoy could have even been related to this lady. Around 30 minutes later, they had exhausted themselves into a comfortable silence. It was then that Hermione really had a chance to think.  
  
"I wish that Malfoy was that easy to talk to," Hermione said to herself.  
  
Once again, Hermione's sensible side was the voice of reason. "Well... we all know that he isn't, so were just going to have to make the best of it. Look, obviously Malfoy isn't going to be nice to you, but you've got to be nice to him...if not for you, do it for Narcissa's sake. She really is a nice woman and I'm sure she'd hate it to see you two arguing."  
  
And once again, Hermione saw the truth in her words. It was then that she made a promise to herself that she would be nothing but nice to Malfoy the whole summer.  
  
About fifteen minutes later, she and Narcissa pulled up to the Manor, and Hermione received yet another shock. Instead of the dark, dreary, cobweb- infested place she expected (where else could a slimy git like Malfoy live?), the house in front of her was very similar to hers...only bigger...much bigger. She didn't have much time to admire the Manor, because before she knew it, they were at the front door.  
  
"Well... this is it. Do excuse the mess. Even with Draco helping me I'm not sure I did the great job of cleaning up."  
  
Narcissa opened the front door and Hermione was stunned. She had never seen anything like it in her life (well except for in the books she read of course)  
  
"Wow. Narcissa. Your house is.... beautiful! And spotless, may I add."  
  
Narcissa laughed. "Why thank you Hermione. And just think. We're still outside the house. Once we step inside it will be even better."  
  
For the second time that day, a slight pink arose on Hermione's cheeks. "Oh! I'm sorry..." Hermione hadn't even moved out of the doorway so they could enter yet. "I've just never seen a house this wonderful before."  
  
"Oh don't worry dear I was just kidding. Lets go inside and have some breakfast. I'm sure you're starving."  
  
With the mention of food, Hermione's stomach rumbled. She had been so nervous she had forgotten about hunger. "My stomach thinks that's a lovely idea."  
  
Draco POV  
  
Draco was deep in slumber. In fact, he was doing something he hadn't done in a long time. He was dreaming...  
  
He was lost. People in long, dark gowns and robes were twirling all  
around him. They all had masks on, even Draco himself. Some dreary  
music was playing in the background. He supposed it was a masquerade  
ball. The twirling couples seemed to be moving in closer and  
closer...suffocating him. He tried to push through them, but he didn't  
seem to be getting anywhere. Things were getting dimmer and dimmer and  
the couples spinned faster and faster. Draco didn't know what to  
do...all those dancing bodies and masked-faces were making him go  
insane. He had to get away. He tried to scan the area, looking for an  
escape. And then he saw her. The only other person who was not dancing  
around him. She was standing a little ways away. He amber waves were  
striking against her white gown. She too was wearing a mask, but it  
was the kind that you hold with your hand that only covers your eyes.  
She stood there silently. Beauty seemed to be radiating from every  
inch of her body. All of a sudden Draco had to the urge to take of his  
mask too. He had to show her who he really was. He reached up to un-  
tie his own mask...  
  
Draco sat up with a start. The minute Draco awoke he knew something was wrong. No...wrong wasn't the right word. Things just felt...different. From his room on the third floor, Draco could here voices floating up from the kitchen...too many voices. Ever since his sorry excuse for a father was sent to Azkaban for the second time (and this time for good), he had gotten used to having just his self and his mother around....and he liked it that way. With the absence of his father came the arrival of a whole new world to him...the world of freedom. He was now able to be his self. Draco didn't have live in his father's shadow or pretend to be someone else he wasn't anymore. Of course, now that his father was gone he was by no means the perfect angel, but he had emerged from his protective shell...and little by little he was getting better.  
  
"Thank you Narcissa. Breakfast was truly wonderful. I really haven't had a meal like that since I left school." Since school had let out, Hermione had gotten used to eating muggle food again. Naricissa's rich breakfast reminded her of the food that her, Harry, and Ron would eat for breakfast before classes.  
  
"Oh it was my pleasure dear. Now, all Draco does is sleep. By the time he wakes up it's usually lunch time...and by then I'm usually too wrapped up doing something else to cook for him. He really is quite the lazy boy."  
  
"Hey," Draco thought. "I'm not lazy... I just need my rest to keep my boyishly good- looks in order. Wait. That's not the point. Who is my mother talking to?" And then it clicked. Yesterday, his mother had informed him that the daughter of a really good friend of her's would be arriving. Her parents were traveling to Africa or something so she would be spending the rest of the summer with them. Draco hadn't decided if that was a good or bad thing yet. He slid out of bed, slipped a pair of shorts over his boxers, and found a clean wife-beater to wear, then walked down the stairs to find out.  
  
He paused half way down the bottom of the stairwell to see if he could find something out about the girl before he had to meet her.  
  
"Here Narcissa, let me help you with the dishes."  
  
"Oh no... I just want you to sit back and relax. I want you to be comfortable. You are the guest...remember? In fact," Narcissa began to take off her rubber gloves. "Let me show you to your room. I really can't believe what a bad hostess I am."  
  
The girl gave a small chuckle. "I do really hate to say this Narcissa, but doing the dishes would help me to relax. It's something I do all the time at home and-"  
  
"Say no more. I know how these things can be. Even though Draco hates to do it, I often like to weed the garden. I get blisters on my fingers and its quite hard on my back but... its just something I like to do. I don't know why ... but I find it quite relaxing..." His mother moved out of the way so the girl could take her spot at the counter.  
  
The girl's back was turned to him. But already he knew he liked what he saw. Her hair fell to the middle of her back in beautiful amber waves. Even though she was just doing the dishes, she had this way of moving so gracefully...as if she were part veela or something. And her voice....there was something oddly familiar about it. He just couldn't put his finger on it.  
  
"Alright then dear...I'll let you finish that up and when you're done I'll show you your room. It used to be Draco's toy room when he was a kid but we've turned it into another spare bedroom. Speaking of Draco, her really should have been up by now."  
  
At the mention of his name, Draco noticed that the girl had shivered as if an icy breeze had just gone by. Draco laughed to his self...his name alone was enough to send shivers up any girls spine these days.  
  
His mother yelled out. "Draco!! Wake up you lazy boy! Come meet our guest!"  
  
Draco decided that now was a good time to make his entrance. He waited a few seconds so it didn't seem like he was eavesdropping, then continued his descent down the stairs. His mother noticed him first. "Ahh there you are. Draco... I'd like to introduce to you...Hermione Regnarg. "  
  
"Wow" Draco thought. "I really didn't think there were any other parents in the world who would be crazy enough to name their daughter Hermione. I really thought that was a one-of-a-kind name."  
  
And it turns out he was right. Hermione turned around and the cool smirk on Draco's face was replaced by a look of utmost horror.  
  
"GRANGER?!?" 


	5. Actions Speak Louder Than Words

AN: sorry if the last chapter seemed a little messed up.. for some reason it wasnt letting me put words in italics when I went to edit the story after I uploaded it.. And I will try and make them longer... I really didn't realize how long you could type for and still have the chapter be so short....lol.... and I will try to stop with the cliff hangers....their just such a good way to end a chapter...lol...and any wayz thanks fer all the reviews....they really do help a lot. Ps... at my meet in Fresno this weekend, I actually placed 8th in the 100... not 9th. (just thought I'd let ya'll know.  
  
Disclaimer: Nope...still not mine.  
  
Chapter 5: Actions Speak Louder Than Words  
  
"_Granger_?!?"  
  
A genuine smile appeared on Hermione's face. "Hello Mal..._Draco_." It turned out that she had been wrong when she had thought that he wouldn't have changed. Besides the fact that he was wearing muggle clothes(and looked quite good in them may I ad), there was something else that was very different about him...she just couldn't quite figure out what it is.  
  
Narcissa had obviously missed the expression of horror on Draco's face because she seemed rather delighted that the two teenagers already knew each other. "Oh!... so you _have_ met. Well that's good...it will save you two some awkwardness."  
  
With that comment both Hermione _and_ Draco let out a small snort.  
  
Oblivious to the sounds just made, Narcissa continued. "Well now that you're up, Draco will you please escort Ms. Regnarg to her room. When you're done with that come back down and get her trunks please...Sorry to cut out like this but I really am over due for nap. Like I said earlier I was up quite late last night doing last minute preparations for your arrival."  
  
Hermione started to apologize but Narcissa was one step ahead of her.  
  
"Oh no dear don't you dare think of apologizing. It's not your fault at all. I really am a bit of a neat freak and I'm afraid I would have done it whether or not you were coming." Narcissa gave Hermione a quick briefing on the locations of the essentials in the house and turned to retire up to her room for her nap...which left Hermione and Draco standing there in a quite awkward silence. They stood there staring at each other, each absorbed in there own thoughts.  
  
Draco's POV  
  
"Wow. Is this really the Hermione I've known for the past 6 years? She really does look quite different out of her school robes. Maybe this summer wont be so bad after all... but wait. Did I just hear my mother call her Ms. _Regnarg_? I'll have to find out _that_."  
  
Hermione's POV  
  
"Why is he staring at me like that. Do I have something in my nose? No... it cant be... this look on his face...it doesn't quite seem to be its usual look of disgust...but what is it..?" Hermione scanned his eyes looking for the answer to her question. It was then that she noticed something very strange. "His eyes," Hermione thought. "Their... different..." And she was right. They didn't seem to be the same cold and emotionless icy gray eyes that she had always seen before. She saw something else. Was it..._happiness_? Hermione was ripped out her thoughts when Draco spoke.  
  
"Look Granger...or shall I say... _Regnarg_." Draco noticed that he had difficulty saying that last word. It was just so...._ugly_. Hermione seemed to have also noticed it because a small smile appeared on her face. "I saw the way you were just staring at me. Look. I know I tend to have that affect on the ladies now-a-days....and I must admit I _do_ enjoy it..." His trademark smirk appeared on his face. "But not when it comes from a..." Draco found him self about to call her a name that she hated. But then he remembered that he did not have to pretend any more. After all, he was a free man now. "...From a... erm...." His confident smirk was fading from his face. What exactly was she now? Draco found he didn't know _what_ to call her anymore. She definantly wasn't the same Hermione he had come to know and ...well..._know_...for all these years.  
  
Hermione had no choice but to let out a small laugh at this. This was one of the rare times in her life when she had actually seen Draco speechless. "For heavens sake Draco. Do I really look so different that you can't be mean to me anymore?"  
  
His sly expression returned. "For your information...I'm not being mean to you because you look different. I'm not being mean to you simply because I don't have to be anymore."  
  
Hermione was not convinced. "Hmmph...So your telling me," Hermione crossed her arms in front of her. "That you've been tormenting me all these years because you _had_ to. Your saying that you weren't acting on your own will...? What...was one of the unforgivable curses put on you or something? Come on Malf...Draco. An old dog can't learn new tricks."  
  
Draco's left eyebrow raised half an inch. "Ill just pretend I didn't here that last comment. And really now. I did expect someone whose grades were almost as good as mine to be smarter than _this_. Have you really not noticed the absence of my father yet?" Draco was beginning to talk faster...and by now Hermione knew that this wasn't a good thing. "Don't try to pretend you don't know why he isn't here. You know just as well as I do that he is in Azkaban now." Draco sighed. "Look. Things have changed. I'm not the same person I used to be." Draco's eyes wondered up and down Hermione's body. "And by the looks things....neither are _you_."  
  
"Eww," Hermione thought. "Did I just get checked out by Draco? Draco Malfoy?? He's right... things _have_ changed."  
  
"Don't try to look all innocent. It appears that you have changed in more ways than I. At least my last name is still the same. Can you explain _that_?"  
  
For a moment Hermione seriously considered it...but then she thought better of it. "No Draco, i can't. It's a long story and I don't feel like explaining it. I, unlike you, have _not_ slept all morning. And it would be greatly appreciated if you would be a good little boy and do what your mother told you." By this time Hermione was almost yelling. "Which, incase you forgot, was to show me to my room."  
  
Draco had the mind to put Grang...Reg..._Hermione_ in her place. And he was just about to do so when he remembered who he was. He decided to calm down. The old Draco would have not stood to be spoken to like this...in fact, he might have done something rather harsh. But he was not that person any more. Instead he gave her his famous smirk. "...No..."  
  
Hermione and Draco glared at each other. Nether of them was willing to back down. Hermione stared straight into his eyes...and he into hers. Even though he was obviously mad, Hermione noticed that his eyes didn't revert back to their old icy, emotionless ways. "What's going on with Malfoy?" Hermione thought. Hermione's sensible side kicked in once again. "Didn't you just promise yourself that you were going to be nice to him? And quit calling him Malfoy. His name is Draco." And again, Hermione had no choice to listen.  
  
"Bloody hell Draco!! Do you always have to get what you want?" Hermione's icy expression softened. "Alright. What do you want to know?"  
  
As it turns out, he wanted to know everything. And sticking to her promise, that's exactly what Hermione told him. Somehow during the conversation, they had moved themselves to the couch. By the end of her speech, Draco was as confused as Hermione was when her mother first told her.  
  
"Wait. So your telling me that you _aren'_t a mud...muggle born?" Hermione nodded her head. "And my parents and your parents were actually good _friends_?"  
  
Now it was Hermione's turn to smirk. "Really now Draco. I would have expected someone whose grades were almost as good as mine to be smarter than _this_."  
  
At that sly comment, even Draco had to smile. Which in turn caused Hermione to smile. Weirdly enough, their smiles grew larger in larger until they were both full out laughing. Between her bouts of laughter, Hermione would peak up at Draco. It appeared that he hadn't had a laugh as good as this one for a long, long time. Hermione was glad she was the one to do it.  
  
When their laughing fit was over, they were both completely out of breath. They sat there on the couch for a few moments, both feeling quite awkward. It seemed that all of a sudden, Draco seemed to have found the pattern on the couch they were sitting on particularly interesting.  
  
"So..." Draco finally looked up from the couch to Hermione. "Are you ready to be shown to your room now?  
  
"Yes. _Do_ be a good boy and do what your mother said."  
  
A mockingly angry look appeared on Draco's face. "Yes mother." They both shared another laugh. They pulled themselves off the couch and Draco led the way to Hermione's new room. A few moments later Draco opened the door for Hermione. Draco was secretly pleased when Hermione let out a small gasp.  
  
"Wow..this used to be your _toy_ room?" It was absolutely beautiful. All of the walls (except for the ceiling, which was left white) were painted a cool gray. There was black trim running along the top and bottom of the wall. Framed in black were various black and white paintings of scenery of nature that seemed to move every now and then when the wind blew. Her furniture was magnificent. All of her pieces were crafted from a wood so dark that it was almost indistinguishable from black....and the bed. It was at least king sized... if not bigger. It had a large black comforter on it with pillows whose shades varied from a very light snow gray to midnight black. The over-all look of the room was calm and serene. Hermione liked it very much. She stood in the doorway (very similarly to the way she did when she first entered the Manor) trying to take it all in. She had completely forgotten Draco was behind her until he startled her out of her thoughts.  
  
"You know... I_ had_ been under the impression that you were a girl."  
  
Hermione turned around to look at him. "What are you talking about? I _am_ a girl."  
  
"Well... then aren't you going to look at your closet?" His trademark smirk was back on his face. Hermione had completely forgotten...and it must have showed. She whirled back around so fast that she almost knocked Draco down. On her sprint to look at the closet, she could have sworn she heard him mutter, "Girls and their closets..."  
  
The closet was definitely up to par with the rest of the room. "This completely dwarfs my old closet at home!" She heard Draco snicker from some where behind her but paid it no mind. The closet was about 5 times the size of her old closet and stocked full of hangers and shelves. In fact, if she had wanted to she could have done cartwheels in it and still not touch the walls! A sense of gratitude rushed into Hermione. She pried herself from her closet and ran to Draco. For some reason unknown to her, she grabbed Draco and consumed him in a hug. To both his and her surprise, he hugged her back. "Thank you Draco."  
  
"Your welcome...Hermione."  
  
They stood there embracing for a moment before they realized what they were doing. With his cheeks flushing (something they _rarely_ do), Draco abruptly pulled away. "Well... erm... I better go get your trunks." He turned away and hurried down the stairs to get her trunks. Hermione was silent as she watched him hurry away. Another conversation began between herself. "Hermione...why did you just do that? This is Draco were talking about...._not_ Harry or Ron. You don't just go around giving out hugs to your enemies. What is going on here?" And of course, sensible Hermione knew the asnswer to her question. "First of all... I'm sure it's safe to say that Draco Malfoy is no longer your enemy. You may not be the best of friends...but enemies you are _no_ longer. And Hermione dear, do you think you hugged him because maybe... just _maybe_... you are starting to get the tiniest, most _minute_ crush on him?" At this suggestion, Hermione had to answer out loud.  
  
"Me?? Have a crush on Draco?" She had to laugh at the thought.  
  
A few seconds later, Draco appeared at her door with her trunks. He had a very strange expression on her face. Halfway between a smirk and a smile. Hermione panicked, thinking he might have heard what she had just said. She knew what was going to come out of his mouth next. "Here's your things. I'll just leave you with your closet." Hermione was so relieved she couldn't even speak  
  
As he moved to close her door, Draco said one last thing. "You know...you'll always be Granger to me." Draco locked eyes with her for a moment, and then shut her door. Hermione listened to the sound of his fading footsteps. "Thanks..." She called out to the closed door.  
  
Hermione stood there for a moment, then walked to her bed and laid on it for the first time. She felt her back sink in to the comfortable sheets. It seemed that he _hadn't_ heard her. Which was definitely a good thing. After all, she didn't want him getting any funny ideas. She closed her eyes for a moment ("Just resting them," she told her self), and before she knew it, she was fast asleep. 


	6. A Broken Promise

**AN**: hey you guys...thanks for all the reviews...they really do help a lot! Guess what. Yesterday I went and saw Harry Potter again... it was soo funny... once you see it for the 2nd or 3rd time you start to notice a lot more things... btw, did any of you guys notice the girl who played Angelina Johnson's character? If you ask me, she seemed a little bit too young to play someone whos older than harry... owell... just something that irked me. ((ps. see if you can get why i called the chapter what i called it))  
  
Disclaimer: Nope... still not mine.

Chapter 6: A Broken Promise

Hermione awoke to a rumble...in her stomach that is. This promptly alerted her that it was lunchtime. She really hadn't meant to fall asleep. But she supposed she was more tired than she had thought....and the bed was so _comfortable_.  
  
She sat up in bed and looked around her room, a little confused at first. As she wiped the drool from her face (that's right... shse drools in her sleep...dont try to act like you dont!), she began to realize where she was. Just then, she heard a knock on her door.  
  
"Erm...Granger?"  
  
"Yes... just... hold on a bit." Hermione noticed he was back on a last-name basis. Dismissing the thought, she climbed out of the bed and went to open her door. Draco peered around her shoulder at the unpacked trunks.  
  
"Bloody hell Granger! What have you been doing up here all these hours? Don't tell me you were still drooling over your closet." As he looked up at her face, his trademark smirk appeared. "Well...by the looks of your face... you _have_ been."  
  
Hermione's cheeks flushed. '_Oh no!!_' she thought. '_Don't tell me I didn't wipe all of the drool off my face!_'  
  
Hermione's hand rushed up to her face to wipe of the rest of the drool. "Shut up Malfoy! Who said you could come in my room anyway?"  
  
"First of all Granger, _technically_ I'm not in your room. I'm only in the doorway. And secondly, I only came to tell you that if you fancied having lunch today you'd better come downstairs."  
  
"Alright I'm coming." Hermione followed Draco down to lunch. She was halfway down the stairs when she realized she had forgotten something. "Oh!... go on.. I'll be down in a second." Draco grunted in response and continued downstairs.  
  
Once in her room, Hermione dug through her trunks to try and a find her quills and parchment. Even though she had packed and repacked, she still had not done a very good job of organizing everything. After a minute or two, she succeeded in locating them and hurried down to join Draco.  
  
When Hermione had gotten down stairs, she placed her parchment on the table in the living room in front of where her and Draco had been sitting earlier. Draco didn't see her enter the kitchen. He had his back turned to her and was busy getting plates and silverware down for them to use. Hermione took advantage of this to slide quietly into her seat the table. She sat watching him quietly, waiting for him to turn around.  
  
A grin appeared on Hermione's face. Watching him was quite amusing. It was obvious that setting the table wasn't something he usually did. In fact, it looked like he didn't know where half of the utensils were located. He had managed to find the plates, but he was searching like mad through every drawer to find the silverware. He seemed to be getting rather frustrated, because every time he opened a drawer that did not have his quarry contained in it, he would slam it closed in a fit of rage.  
  
"This is bloody _ridiculous_!!" Hermione's grin grew larger. "Where..." slam. "Are..." _Slam_! "Those bloody..." **SLAM**! "knives?!?" **_SLAM_**! Now Hermione was fighting to keep down a laugh. Draco still didn't notice her presence at the table. He paused for a second, then reopened the last drawer he had slammed shut. "Oh! Here the little buggers are! All this trouble for a bit of bloody knives!!!" Having finally found the plates and knives for them to use, Draco turned around to set them on the table. When he saw Hermione, he jumped so high that he nearly dropped everything he was holding.  
  
"Bloody hell Granger!!" The look on Draco's face was priceless. "How long have you been there?" Hermione could no longer contain her laughter...which unfortunately, only seemed to make Draco madder. "Are just going to sit there laughing like a mad man?"  
  
Hermione managed to respond through her bouts of laughter. "Me?!? _You're_ calling _me_ the madman?" Honestly Draco I wish I could have taped you...you were positively..." Hermione burst out laughing again. "_Brilliant_!!" Draco had obviously heard the sarcasm in her voice.  
  
Draco had regained his composer. "Why thank you Granger. And by the way, I thought _you_ also looked quite brilliant when...what was it...that bit of _drool_ was hanging from your mouth earlier. I must admit, that look fit you _quite_ nicely."  
  
At this comment, Hermione had stopped laughing. Now it was her turn to sport the priceless look. Draco began to laugh. Hermione noticed the way his face lit up. '_Wow. He really ought to laugh more often_.'  
  
Draco's bout of laughter was much shorter than Hermione's, so the table was set in no time.  
  
"So... what have you cooked up for us to enjoy?"  
  
"Well...erm..." Draco had a slightly bashful look on his face. "Well... I hadn't gotten that far yet."  
  
"Honestly Draco...you _just_ told me to come downstairs because lunch was ready. And now you tell me that you haven't even starting cooking it yet?"  
  
"Actually Granger," Draco let out a sly chuckle. "_Technically_, I never told you lunch was ready. All I said was if you _fancied_ lunch you'd better come downstairs. I believe you made up the part about it being _ready_ all on your own."  
  
"Then why the bloody hell did you call me down here? To sit and _watch_ you make us lunch?"  
  
"Wrong again Granger. Actually.." Draco absent-mindedly swept a piece of stray hair from his face. "I was hoping that _you'd_ fix lunch for us."  
  
Hermione wasn't surprised. After all, this is _Malfoy_ were talking about. Even though he had changed a bit, he was still quite used to getting waited on at the snap of his finger. '_Well, if he thinks that I'm going to be his own personal little house elf... he's sadly mistaken_.'  
  
"Malfoy, _I'm_ the guest here. _You're_ supposed to wait on _me_...not the other way around!"  
  
"Well, I'm sorry if that's the way you're used to doing it. But here at the Malfoy Manor, things are run _quite_ differently."  
  
"Well Malfoy," Hermione crossed her arms in front of her chest. "Get used to it." And with that, Hermione turned and left the kitchen, leaving Malfoy standing there alone and quite confused.  
  
Even though Hermione was quite hungry, she felt that the satisfaction of beating Malfoy at his own game was more important. She was about to head back upstairs to her room to unpack, when she remembered that she had brought her quills and parchment downstairs. So, instead, she took a seat on the couch and began to write letters to her best friends Harry and Ron. While she was decided what she would put down, she noticed a self portrait of Malfoy directly across the room hanging above the fire place. '_Wow. How self absorbed can you get_.' As if it had heard the comment she had thought in her head, the portrait gave her one of Malfoy's trade mark smirks. She rolled her eyes at it and decided to write Harry's first.  
  
_Dear Harry.  
  
How has your summer been so far? Good I hope. Mine, on the other hand, has been quite..._eventful_, to say the least. Sorry I haven't written to you in a while, but I have been very busy. I've been told some very interesting things. To make a very long story short, my last name isn't really Granger, it's Regnarg. My parents changed our last name when we went into hiding from the wizarding world a little bit before I was born. Which means I'm not a muggle-born after all. Also, it turns out that my parents and the Malfoys are old friends. My parents wished to take an extended trip to Africa this summer, and they've left me to stay at the Malfoy Manor for the rest of the summer. So unfortunately I'll be in very close contact with that prat, Malfoy. But don't worry Harry. Surprisingly, he's actually been quite nice to me so far. He didn't flat out say it, but I think it has something to do with the fact that his father is now in Azkaban. Narcissa has been quite nice also. Sorry it seems to confusing, but it's a rather long story and I'll tell you when I see you in person. I cant wait to see you and Ron. That's all for now. Write back.  
  
Your Friend,  
Hermione_.  
  
Now that that was over with, it was time for Ron's letter.  
  
_Dearest Ron,  
How have you been? Good I hope. Sorry I haven't written in a while, but things have been very hectic lately. A lot of thigns have happened to me in a very short period of time. I can't tell you all of it right now, but I'm going to try and make a_ very _long story short. It seems that for all of these years, my parents have been lying to me about many thigns. For one, my last name isn't really Granger, it's Regnarg. My parents changed our last name when we went into hiding from the wizarding world a little bit before I was born. Which means I'm not a muggle-born after all. Also, it turns out that my parents and the Malfoys are old friends. My parents wished to take an extended trip to Africa this summer, and they've left me to stay at the Malfoy Manor for the rest of the summer. So, unfortunately, I'll be in very close contact with Malfoy. Yes I know it sounds bad, but it really isn't (at least not yet). He's actually been quite nice to me. He hasn't even called me mudblood one time. Surprising isn't it? He hasn't flat out told me, but I think it has something to do with the fact that his father is in Azkaban now. Naricissa has been quite nice also. She is a completely different person from the one we met at the Quidditch cup back in our fourth year. I guess lots of things have changed.  
Sorry if it's a bit confusing. But I'll explain in detail when I see you again. I really have missed you Ron. Even though I do bicker with Malfoy, it isn't nearly as fun as the arguments I have with you. But any way, write back soon.  
  
With Love,  
Hermione_.  
  
Just as she had finished, she heard Malfoy's footsteps coming from the stairway. Hermione was so absorbed in writing her letters, she hadn't even heard him pass by.  
  
"What do we have here Granger." Draco tried to get a glimpse at her parchment. "Writing a letter to your dearest parents?"  
  
"No Malfoy, I'm not." Hermione knew this next comment would make him jealous. "For you information, I'm writing to Harry and Ron"  
  
And she was right. Hermione succeeded in turning Draco's smirk into a sneer. "Oh. Well _that _case, I'll just have to take a little peek, now wont I."  
  
"Actually, you wont. What I'm writing to them about it really none of your business."  
  
"_That_, Granger, is where you're wrong. I'm afraid anything you do in _my_ house is _my_ business. So I belive I will."  
  
As Draco grabbed for her letters, Hermione snatched them away at lightning speed. "No Malfoy, you wont." Hermione glared at Malfoy. "Look Malfoy, I am _not_ that oaf Crabbe or that stupid git Goyle. _Nor_ am I one of your insane worshippers from Slytherin." Hermione's voice was getting louder. " And I'm sick and tired of you strutting about the place as if your some kind of god. Maybe to that... _scarlet lady_ Pansy you are... but not... to... me." By this point, Hermione was yelling. "And If you think that your going to try and boss me around like you do to your little slaves Crabbe and Goyle," Hermione stood up. "You've really got another thing coming to you."  
  
Draco watched her storm up the stairs until she was out of sight. When she reached her room, she slammed the door so hard that his portrait that had been hanging above the fire place fell down and was ripped.  
  
"Great. Thanks a lot Granger."


	7. Apology Accepted

AN: hey hey..sorry guys I haven't updated in a long time... things have been very hectic cuzz im n the middle of tryin to transfer schools.. so yea...enjoy!  
  
Dislcaimer: none of this is mine... still...  
  
Chapter 8: Apology Accepted

Last Chapter...  
_As Draco grabbed for her letters, Hermione snatched them away at lightning speed. "No Malfoy, you wont." Hermione glared at Malfoy. "Look Malfoy, I am not that oaf Crabbe or that stupid git Goyle. Nor am I one of your insane worshippers from Slytherin." Hermione's voice was getting louder. "And I'm sick and tired of you strutting about the place as if your some kind of god. Maybe to that... scarlet lady Pansy you are... but not... to... me." By this point, Hermione was yelling. "And If you think that your going to try and boss me around like you do to your little slaves Crabbe and Goyle," Hermione stood up. "You've really got another thing coming to you."  
  
Draco watched her storm up the stairs until she was out of sight. When she reached her room, she slammed the door so hard that his portrait that had been hanging above the fire place fell down and was ripped.  
  
"Great. Thanks a lot Granger."_  
  
Hermione sat on her bed. Just when things were beginning to go smoothly, Malfoy had to go and ruin it. It seems that ruining things was all he was good for. And to think, this was only her first day there. '_Owell Hermione don't let him bother you._' She knew she was right, but it was really much easier said than done.  
  
With a great sigh, Hermione got off her bed to mail her letters to Harry and Ron. She opened her door, then stopped dead in her tracks. '_Oh crap_.' Just exactly how was she going to mail her letters...after all, she didn't have an owl of her own. She plopped face-down on her bed, thinking about what she would do.  
  
After a few moments of careful deliberation, she decided on what she would do. There was no way around it. She was going to have to make up with Malfoy. '_Well..._' she mumbled to her bed, '..._Maybe I was a bit_...harsh. _It's really not his fault he's an insufferable prat_.'  
  
A loud snort made her jump "You got _that_ right...the harsh part i mean."  
  
Hermione whirled around, her eyes large in surprise. "Malfoy!! You can't just come barging into my room whenever you-"  
  
"_Woah_...calm down Granger. Before you go getting your kickers in a bunch" Draco's trademark smirked appeared. "First of all, the door was already open. And second, I just came up here to apologize." Hermione's eyes grew even larger. "Yes, that's right. The Great Draco Ahrias Malfoy has just apologized to someone for the first time in a very long time, and you might never hear it again...so listen up. You were right earlier when you said.." Draco waved his hand impatiently in front of him. "Well...all that stuff you said." Except for maybe the part about being a God. I think you were _right_ on target with that comment."  
  
Now it was Hermione's turn to snort.  
  
Draco continued. "So I'm... im... _sorry_. And since you'll be living here for a while I really think we out to start on a fresh slate." A smile small smile spread across his face. "So... how bout it. Friends?" He held out his hand to her.  
  
Hermione stood staring at him in an appraising sort of way. '_Is he really being genuine?_' She knew the answer to her question was in his eyes. She gazed into his piercing stare. A strand of his icy blond hair fell into his face. Draco moved his hand and absent-mindedly pushed it away. '_Wow... he really is handsome. I can see why all his little followers praise him as they do_. '  
  
As if Draco read her mind, his smirk appeared on his face and he waggled his eyebrows.  
  
"_Honestly_ Draco." Hermione was trying to fake her usual disgust, but soon a small smile appeared on face...which turned into a chuckle. "Well...alright then. Friends. Hermione grabbed his hand and gingerly shook it.  
  
"Well hello you two!" It seemed that Narcissa had woken up from her slumber. She looked between the two of them, who's hands were still joined together. "Well I don't know about _yo_u guys," a sly smile appeared on her face. Hermione and Draco suddenly became aware of their positions and quickly dropped there hands. Hermione stole a quick glance at Draco. Was that a blush she saw on his cheeks? "But _I'm_ starving! How about we go down stairs and I'll fix us some lunch!"  
  
Hermione and Draco shared a knowing smile.  
  
"Sure mom. That would be great.  
  
**AN: sorry it was soooo short. I'm at my friends house right now. Along with all the school-switching business, track has been VERY involving and PLUS, the comps are down at my house. I'm in the middle of setting up my laptop. dude!! I got a dell! ((..lol sorry if ya don't kno what im talking bout...it's a USA thing....lol)) So hopefully everything'll be set up soon and track will die down and I can go back to posting a chapter a day...((which I kno yall love))**


	8. The Game

AN: Yay!! i finally got my laptop set up in my room. So now itlll be back to updates every day or so. Im so happy. And sorry about the longgg wait. But i think it was worth it....((heres the disclaimer... jk owns it all))

...and Now... without further adieu....

A Most Unexpected Love

Chapter 8: The Game

Lunch had gone well. Draco, Narcissa, and Hermione had easily busied themselves with small talk in between bites of food. Well... really, it was more like Narcissa busied _herself _with conversation while Hermione and Draco _listened_, adding in the occasional "Really?" or "You dont say" now and then. Often times, Hermione almost wanted to just put a silencing charm on Naricissa to save herself from insanity. It was during those times when her and Draco would share a glance and a smile, knowing that as annoying as the chatter was, it wasn't worth getting expelled over. It was almost as if Narcissa had been silent for many years and was finally able to express herself freely. Hermione betted it wasn't far from the truth. But even with all of Narcissa's excess chatter, the actual food part of lunch was rather enjoyable.

Draco and Hermione had both gotten thier fill and were siiting at the table, quite unsure of what to do next. Even though most of the food was gone, Narcissa's chatter still remained. Neither of them wanted to be the first to get up from the table and interrupt her. Especially not Hermione, whose parents had taught her better.

So Hermione and Draco sat pushing the remaining morsels on the plate around and around, giving each other glances that said "Tell her" or "No _you _tell her" both hoping the other person would find the nerve to excuse them.

Many "Oh's" and "You're kidding me's" comming from Hermione and Draco later, Narcissa finally seemed to have gotten her fill on talking.

"_I_ have an idea! Draco darling, why dont you give Hermione a grand tour of the grounds?"

Though this was just the escape from his mother he needed, he wasn't planning on spending it _outside. _After all, just because he and Hermione were now friends, didnt change the fact that he was still a lazy boy."Well...erm.." Draco tried to think quick to get out of the request. "Didnt you do that already when she first got here?"

Narcissa was quick to sense what Draco was up to. "Nonsense! I gave her no such thing! I merely showed her where the things in the kitchen were located. That's hardely a tour. Draco really.. is it _that_ hard to get off yer arse once in a while and get some fresh air?" Narcissa got up from her seat at the table and drew back the curtains. "Its a beautiful day outside honey. Isnt it just..._calling_ you?"

Draco raised his eyebrows. Calling him it was one thing it was definately _far _from doing. Seeing that his plan was failing, he had to resort to plan B. Putting on his best puppydog-pout face, he turned to his mother. "But mother, I'm_ ever _so tired. I've been up _all_ morning entertaining our guest," Hermione gave a snort at that comment. "And i think that it would be very benifici-"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Oh come on Draco, are you really that lazy? After all, it could be fun." She flashed him one of her dazziling smiles.

Draco felt his stomach do a twist. '_Erg.. must have been the tofu_.'

Before he had a chance to respond, he mother had pulled him off of his chair and was shooing him and Hermione outside. "And Hermione make sure you guys don't come back until Draco's done a satisfactory job."

Hermione laughed. "Oh.. don't worry Narcissa." She gave draco a sly look. "I'm sure we wont be comming back until _wayy_ after dark."

Draco's POV

_'What does she have up her sleeves_,' Draco thought. '_Oh welll... i must admit i wouldn't mind spending all night with her_.' Draco mentally slapped himself. _' Lets try and not think those thougths ever, ever again Draco_.'

"Okay you two be safe." And Narcissa shut the door.

So by the looks of things it looked like Draco was going to be stuck with her. But he supposed that company from Hermione was better than no company at all.

"So...what on the agenda first?"

He shurugged his sholders.

What _were_ they going to do? Draco began to walk. "I dont know. There really isnt much to do here."

It seemed she wasn't convinced. "Oh yeah _right_. Your telling me that with all these acres of land that there is not one even _remotely _interesting thing that one could do here?"

"Nope. Not really." And it was the truth. Draco thought that the manor was frightfully boring, and ususally just stayed in his room all day. Or went over to Blaise's house, but really that wasn't much better. Though sometimes... _Pansy_ would show up in univited. And of course his mother _had _to let her in. Then he would be forced to be a good host and entertain her. Draco shuddered at the thought. Actually, when he thought about, he was sort of doing the same thing now. But, at least Hermione wasn't giggling like a mad woman everytime he uttered a syllable or trying to attack his ear with her tongue every 20 seconds.

Hermione sighed. "Okay then. How about we play a game."

Draco chortled. "A game? Yea that's funny. What kind of games do you like to play? Catogorizing all of the flowers in your mother's garden according to thier Phylum, Species, and Order?"

"No." Hermione playfully pushed him. "_Though_.." She had a pensive look on her face. "I really ought to try that one when i get home." Draco stared at her in disbelief. _'I knew she was bad...' _Draco thought. _'But come on! She's really got to be kidding me!_'

Hermione laughed. "If looks could kill... Don't worry Draco. I'm only kidding. For being the Prince of Slytherin you really dont have much of a sense of humor."

Draco smiled. "I'll just let that comment go. So what sort of game is it then."

"I'ts one to help people get to know each other. I learned about when i took a communtiy service class on how to be a better tutor. Yes," Hermione smiled fondly. "I remember... that class was actually quite informative. I learned alot of new things regarding the social habits of young children. Even though social habits dont really have much to do with tutoring, the instructor seemed to think it did. And she was right in the end actually...after a while it all seemed to tie in. Espcially when dealing with April -she was my first tutoree, mind you. She was really shy and i had a bit of a rough time trying to get her to warm up to me. After all, how can you expect to help a child learn if she's afraid to ask you for help. But she eventually warmed up to me because after-"

Draco smiled. '_So this what the real Hermione Granger is like. I see why the Weasel and Pothead are always so agrivated. They have to deal with her all day'. _But really, it was actually quite cute. The way she rambled on and on. About things, that is, not _her_.

After a few moments more of her rambling, Draco decided to stop her.

"Hermione." She didnt seem to hear him. "HERMIONE!"

"_Yes _Draco!! _Honestly _there's no need to yell. I am right here you know."

Draco chuckled and shook his head in pitty. _'The poor thing_,' he thought. _'She really must not get a chance to talk to people much in the summer.' _

'The _game_?"

Hermione looked confused. "Game..?" Slowly, realization dawned on her. "Ahh yes.. the game. Well like i was _trying _to tell say." She shot Draco a nasty look. "It's like this. Your going to ask me a question. Anything you want."

_'Anything I want ehh_...?' Draco turned to her and lifted his eyebrows.

"Anything within _reason _of course.," She quickly added, seeing the look he had given her. Draco's face fell once more. "Sorry Draco. This game doesn't give you permission to be a slimy pig-headed git."

"Hey! You cant talk to the almighty Sly-"

"Like i was saying. You can ask me anything you want and I have to answer truthfully. And then it's my turn to ask you the question and _you _have to tell the truth. So.. you want to play?" She turned and waited for his response.

_'That's her idea of fun?... No this wont do'_

"How about we make it a tad more... _interesting_."

Hermione looked doubtful. "What do you mean...'interesting'?"

"Well.. how about the first person who isn't able or doesn't want to truthfully answer the question has to take a dare instead. And you _have _do to it...deal?

"Well..alright."

"Okay. I'll go first. What-"

"Wait why do _you_ get to go first?"

_'I knew it wasn't going to be that easy.' _"Beacause im the Slytherin Prince and royalty comes first."

"Pshh you wish! And besides, _I_ was the one who thought of the game! So _I_ should go first."

"Well, not the _whole_ game. I thought of the little twist at the end remember. So that means that I should start."

"Well... I'm the guest here, so naturally I should be the one to begin."

"True.. but where are you the guest at? Oh! That's right. At _my _house! There for I should start.

Hermione was beginning to get flustered. "Just because it's your house doesn't mean you have the right to boss everyone around! Honestly, Draco!! Didn't we _just _go over this?? Haven't you heard of ladies first?"

'_Blast it! She does have a point_,' Draco thought. Then a fine idea popped into his head. '_Fine. If she wants to go first... i'll let her.' _

"Your right Hermione."

"Oh come _on_ Dra-." Hermione did a doubletake. "What? Are you actually admitting that you're wrong? Wow. Twice in one day...that _must_ be a new world record."

Draco fought the urge to retort. Instead, he gave her an overly-sweet smile. "What sort of Malfoy would iI be if I didn't allow the lady to begin? Go ahead Hermione. I'll let you go first."

Hermione seemed grately surprised. "Why, thank you Dra-" Hermione stopped walking. "Wait a minute. Let me? _Let_ me? Now you just wait one minute Draco Malfoy. There is not a boy in this world who would _let _Hermione Jane Granger do anything. Because I dont-"

"Regnarg"

"-Think that any-...Exucuse Me?"

Draco's sly smile appeared on his face. "Dont you mean Hermione Jane _Regnarg_?"

Hermione's angry face melted into a smile. "Yes... I suppose you do have a point." They resumed walking again. "Tell you what Draco. In hopes of preventing a row even bigger than the one we had just a few hourse ago, I'm going to agree to let you let me go first."

And seeing as his plan went even better than he had origanally supposed, they walked over to the nearest willow tree and began to play the game.


	9. Bewitched!

AN: Hey guys! Time for another intertaining chapter. By the way i forgot to say thank you in the last chapter to my friend Ahmbrya for giving me the idea for this game. I really hate playing it but she makes me do it anyway. But hey...it seems it come in handy this time.

Disclaimer: ((n tune to ring around the rosey)) I Own nothing and JK owns it allllll....((that was corny i know... but hey at least i TRIED to make it interesting))

A Most Unexpected Love

Chapter 9: Through the Trees

Once she and Draco were seated beneath the willow, Hermione surrveyed her suroundings. She had been so engrosed in the argu- erm.. _conversation _between her and Draco that she hadn't really been paying attention to where she was going. It appeared that they were now quite far away from the Manor. As she looked around, Hermione noticed that they seemed to be in some sort of grove. The large willow under which they were seated was in the center of a grassy area which was surrounded by smaller trees. There werent many flowers there, just mostly grass. And there seemed to be a constant pleasant breeze flowing. The whole atmosphere was rather relaxing.

'_Even though I wasn't exactly paying attention to where I was going_,' Hermione thought. _'I'm almost sure I would have notices all of _this.'

"Draco, is this place bewitched?"

"Very smart Hermione," Draco smiled. " I was wondering if you were going to notice."

Hermione felt a tingle in her stomach. _'Looks like I shouldn't have eaten so much Tofu_.'

"_If _I was going to notice? Hermione teased. "I'm sure you meant to say _when_."

Draco chortled. "Whatever. Okay so now it's my turn. So Her-"

"_Your _turn? Why is it _your _turn. You just said that I could go first!"

"Your right, I did say that. And you just did. So now it's my turn."

"What? That wasn't my turn! I didn't even ask you a question!"

"Draaaaco.." He said in a mockingly babyish voice. " Is this place bewiitttcched?"

Hermione laughed. "Okay so maybe I did ask you a question. But I didn't know that we had started."

Now Draco was laughing. "Well we did. So now it's my turn." He was expecting another retaliation from Hermione, but to his surprise she didn't

Hermione sighed. "Okay. Fine. You go."

Draco raised his eyebrows at her in surprise. "Okay.. so Hermione, " Draco decided he would keep the questions light at first. "What house did you want to be sorted into."

Hermione was surpised. "Interesting that you asked that. I was expecting something more like.. 'Hermione,' She teased in a caveman voice. 'You you wear thong or granny panties.' She waggled her eyebrows at him.

Draco laughed. "Well actually, that was going to be my _next _question."

"Okay. Well actually when the sorting hat was put on my head, as you probably would have guessed, I asked him to put me in Ravenclaw. But he wouldn't. Actually we had our selves a nice little argument going on for a bit. I wanted to be in Ravenclaw, or at least Hufflepuff. But _Gryffyndor_? But the hat wouldn't change his mind. So I figured, 'Oh well. As long as it wasn't Slytherin... No offense!' she quickly added.

"None taken."

"Okay... so Draco." She thought for a moment, thinking back to her earlier question. "Were you the one who bewitched this place?"

"Why? Do you like it?"

"Sorrrryy," she said in a sing-songy voice. "No answering questions with other qestiooonnnsss,"

"Well, you didn't say that before."

"Sorry Draco. I must have underestimated you. I would have thought that the smartest student in Slytherin would have already taken it for a given."

Draco smirked at her. "So you think I'm the smartest in Slytherin then ehh?"

"Hey, I'm asking the questions here."

He let out a fake exasperated sigh. "Fine. Erm... what was the question again?"

" I asked you where you the one who bewitched it."

"Right.. No"

There was a long pause. Hermione looked at him expectantly.

"What are you staring at!?"

"Well...? Arent you going to finish?"

"Finish what?"

"Draco!!" Hermione was begining to get annoyed. "Finish the bowl of soup I made you."

Draco's face scrunched up in confusion. "What bowl of soup? Bloody hell Hermione what are you talking about?"

"The question Draco just an-"

"What bloody bowl of soup are you talking about? I dont s-"

This was ridiculous. How could one as smart as Draco get so confused over something as silly as this? Hermione began to laugh. "Never mind the bloody soup Draco just finish what you were saying."

Draco began to shake his head at her as if she was some poor, misguided creature. " Hermione what are you talking about. I finished what i was saying. You asked me if I was the one who bewitched this area and I said no. What more do you want?

"Draco you can't just give me a one word answer! You have to expand."

He turned to her defiantly. "Now now Hermione. You can't just go adding rules in whenever you please."

Hermione rolled her eyes. She wasnt about to start another row over something as silly as this. Insteas, she had a better idea.

"Fine fine Draco. I'll let you get your way this time. Okay?

"_Let _me?" Draco teased her. _Let _me? Now wait just one minute. There is not a girl in this world who would _let _Draco Ahrias Malfoy do an-"

But Draco had been thrown to the ground. Before Draco could get a chance to recover, Hermione straddled his body with a playful sneer. "Shutup Ferretboy." Draco could have easily overpowered her, but Hermione sprang off of him before he had a chance to react.

"Where do you think _you're _going?" He called after her?

"Where ever I please!" she called back behind her as she sprinted into the trees.

Draco's POV.

Hermione rushed into the trees and Draco was quick to follow. For being a girl, she sure was fast. But of course, Draco was faster. Even though she had a head start he would catch up to her in no time. As he sped on, the many trees he rushed past became nothing more than a blur. As they ran deeped and deeper into the trees, a happy giggle would come drifting to him from somewhere in front of him

_'Surely she can't keep this pace up for much longer.'_

Now he could hear the sounds of the trees crackin and she darted through them. She may have been faster, but his strides were longer. He was getting nearer. He called out. "Do you even know where you are Hermione?"

A loud piercing squeal came in responce.

_'Oh shit. '_

"Hermione!!!"

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So.. how do you like it? Yea i kno the Hermione might seem a abut OOC... but hey.. g0tta get some excitement n s0meh0w. Yes i kno she fights Maldoy alot but its only because she feels comfortable enough to do it now.... or maybe its a sign 0f their sexual tensi0n ehh?? lol....and its not really fighting.. more of a teasing....

d0 y0u guys think i sh0uld continue with this st0ry?? well review and tell me!!


	10. Fear

AN: THANKS TO ALL OF MY REGULAR REVIEWERS AS WELL AS EVERYONE ESLE WHO TOOK THE TIME TO REVIEW!!! if youve ever written something you know how happy you can get when you have some new reviews waiting for you in yer mailbox!! sorry for the very very long chapter wait.... ive been a bit lazy.... and ive had a bit of a writers block... and im not qutie sure that its cured.... s0 y0u tell me!!(( but i will try and get better though!!))

Diclaimer: all characters belong to jk....

A Most Unexpected Love

Chapter 10: Afraid

Last Chapter....

Now he could hear the sounds of the trees crackin and she darted through them. She may have been faster, but his strides were longer. He was getting nearer. He called out. "Do you even know where you are Hermione?"

A loud piercing sqeal came in responce.

_'Oh shit. '_

"Hermione!!!"

Hermione's POV

Hermione's full sprint came to an abrupt stop. She couldn't belive her eyes. There was no way that she was actually seeing what she was seeing. There before her, stood a beautiful pasture full the largest selection of horses that Hermione had ever seen! She stood there in aw, unaware of the distress she had caused Draco.

"Are you touched in the head??" panted Draco. "What in bloody hell did you scream about?!"

"Draco..." now her voice was almost in a whisper. "Horses.. You didn't tell me you had horses..." Then Hermione started to realize what she had just said. "Thats right," her voice rising. "You didn't tell me you had horses Draco!"

Draco didn't see what she was getting so worked up about. "...So?"

"_So_? Draco I asked you if there was anything interesting to do here! And what did you say? Oh _no _Hermione," she continued in a mocking voice. "There's nothing even _remotely _interesting to do _here_."

Draco stared at her and blinked. "There isnt."

"So your telling me that you don't call havaing a pasture full of horses interesting? I can't- Oh whatever Draco. I'm not in the mood to argue right now." And with that she turned her back to him and her attention to the horses.

Draco's POV

Draco contemplated what to do. Should he leave her there with her horses? He took a few stps in the oppisite direction, but then decided against it. After all, she may have gotten her self here, but she sure wouldn't know how to get back. So he decided to stay.

Deciding to make his self more comfortable, he took a seat on the ground beneath a near by tree. Not nearly as comfortable as he was with Hermione underneath the willow, but it would do.

_'Woah_,' Draco thought. '_Did i just say I was comfortable with Hermione? Those are two words which_ definatley _should not be in the same sentence_.' Draco crocked his head slightly to the side. Well, he had to admit it... it was nice talking to her. Draco could see why Pothead and the Weasel liked to hand around her so much. She was an... _interesting _person when she wasnt in one of her moodswings.

Speaking of that...What _was _that all about? _'Oh well.. I'll never understand girls. Well..execpt Pansy that is.. all she wants from me are my sickles and snogging.' _Draco laughed at his clever words_. 'But Hermione's different. She's_... complex. _One minute shes talking to you like everything's fine, and the next minute shes jumped down your throat about something or another_.'

Draco shifted his position so he could see her better. She was leaning against the fence, seemingly almost entranced by the horses. Ever so often she would let out a longing sigh.

Draco really didnt see what was so interesting about horses. Ever since thrid year when he had gotten attacked by that... _monster _that seemed to be also known as a Hippogriff, Draco wasn't to fond of large beasts that stood on four legs. But even he had to admit, Horses _were_ rather mild. They didn't bother you as long as you dont bother them. Which was something he couldn't say about Hippogriffs.

Infact, when he was younger, he actually enjoyed them. He and his mother would come out to the stables early in the morning and ride them, so by the time his father would start to wonder where he and his mother disappeared to, they would already be on thier way back. Yes... his father disapproved of riding the horses. Actually, he disapproved of _anything_ if it didn't have anything to do with the Dark Lord. Which was probably part of the reason why he enjoyed it so much. It was like his and his mother's little secret. When he thought about, his father hadn't wanted the horses on his property in the first place. But his mother had insisted, and back in the early years, his father had been less of an egotistical control-freak and more of a...Draco wouldnt quite go as far as to say _father_... but he was more of ..._human_. Yes...that was it. His father actually did used to exibit human like qualities. Draco actually had faint memories of he and his father laughing when he was little...._really _little. And it wasn't of the same insane maniac sort his father used to do most recently either. It was real...and full of genuine happiness... but then of course with the rise of Voldemort came the rise of his new father.

Draco shuddered. He didn't like to remember the past. There was no use in dwelling on the past when there was nothing you could do to change it. Instead, he turned his attention back to Hermione. She was much better to think about than the past. He got up and walked stood near she was leaning.

Hermione was perfectly still as the wind toyed with he stray stands of hair. Again, she let out a sigh. She seemed to be throuroghly deep in thought about something, but what?

As if on cue. Hermione turned to him. "I really wish i could you know."

"You wish you could do what?"

She bit her lip and turned back towards the horses. Hermione was silent again. She seemed to be contemplating something again. What was wrong wit her? After a few moments more, she turned towards him.

"I wish I could ride the horses."

Was that what she had been thinking about this whole time? Surely, there had to be something more...

Draco smiled at her. "We can you know. I know how."

"No," she said suddenly. A fearful glint came across her eyes. "No, I can't."

Draco gave her a skeptical look. "Uhh... may I ask why not?"

"Because Draco." she turned back towards the horses.

Draco was not convinced. "Because _what_?" He was trying to remain patient, seeing as Hermione was obviously trying to tell him something important. But by nature, Draco was not a patient person.

She ran her he fingers through her hair. When she spoke, it was barely above a whisper. "I'm a afraid."

She became silent again. Draco turned and looked at her. Hermione? Afraid? He found it hard to believe. Yet she was so..._still_. She possed this sort of beauty that he had not noticed before. But that was a lie. Truthfully, he had noticed before, that was part of the reason he was always so horrible to her. He couldn't be attracted to her... he _wouldnt_. And her being what she is...what she _was _didnt make it any easier. But now... it was getting harder and harder to deny it.

"Hermione." He had meant it to come out louder than it had, but instead, it was barely more than a whisper.

She turned her face to his. She was so beautiful and he was no longer afraid. He slowly wiped the tear away that was falling down her cheek. Draco looked in to her eyes and slowly brought his face to hers.


	11. Isn't that enough?

AN: Hey Guys...lol im soooooooooooo sorry the update took sooo long... i juss sorta lost drive...o well at least its back... the only reason im starting back again is cuzz when i was rereading the reviews i got for my other oneshot called Why Hermione Doesnt like Horses (( recently retitles to Hermione's Horses)) i realized i really missed writing and getting reviews....so yea..... oh and just curiuos.. but how many of you realized that all this stuff thats been happenning is all occuring on her first day there? haha looks like i sorta forgot to change the days as we go along. oh well.. maybe i should change the story to How To Love a Malfoy in 24 Hours? Eh? Ehh? 0k.. myabe n0t...lol

pS.. i think if you read my other one shot called Why Hermione Doesnt Like Horses ((recently retitles to Hermione's Horses)) youll get some ...well lets just call it....helpful background info.... please check it out...

Disclaimer... Still all JKs..

A Most Unexpected Love

Chapter 11:

Last Chapter...

"Hermione." He had meant it to come out louder than it had, but instead, it was barely more than a whisper.

She turned her face to his. She was so beautiful and he was no longer afraid. He slowly wiped the tear away that was falling down her cheek. Draco looked in to her eyes and slowly brought his face to hers.

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Hermione's POV

The kiss was short and sweet. We pulled our faces away from each other. I smiled, which in turn made Draco smile.

"Come on." Draco hurdled himself over the fence into the pasture. Before i had a chance to protest, he grabbed me underneath my arms, much like one would do to a baby, and lifted me over the fence.

I looked around at the horses. They were all so... magestic. I wondered to my self how one could be fearful of something so beautiful.

Hermione didn't know why she was so afraid of them. She just..never really liked them. Afterall, it wasn't as if they had six inch fangs gleaming from their mouths. They couldn't fly and they sure weren't evil...so why was she so afraid. She supposed she would never know.

Draco hurdled her out of her thoughts. "Let's go."

"Go? Oh no...we're not going anywhere. Well actually, let me rephrase that. You can go where ever you want. But im stay-"

But before Hermione had a chance to respond, Draco was leading her toward the closest horse.

"Draco slow down!! Your going to scare it away!!!"

But to Hermiones suprise, the horse wasnt scared. In fact, it seemed to recognize Draco. It trotted over to where he and Hemione were standing.

"There there Amylist... haven't been around in a while..have I girl?" Draco affectionately rubbed the horses back. Amylist gave a soft snort in responce.

"Draco, shes beautiful.."

He turned to her. "Yes... this one's always been my favorite."

They stood in silence, admiring the horses beauty. Hermione was deep in her thoughts, almost entranced by the horses beauty...

"Get on."

Hermione was startled. "What? Get...?" Then she realized what he was trying to get her to do."Ohhh no Draco. There's no way your going to get me on that horse. You got me over the fence... isn't that enough?"

Draco looked as if he was _actually_ contemplating this suggestion. Hermione hoped he wouldn't revert backt to usual pig headed self and actually be reasonable for once. Then he began to tug her arm.

"Nope.. it's not." He smiled. "Come on Hermione.. I'm not going to let anything happen to you.. I promise."

Hermione shook her head. Promise or no promise. There was absolutley no _way_ she was getting on that horse. He didnt get it.. he didnt understand. Hell, Hermione didnt even understand it. All she knew was if she was to ride that horse, she would be frightened. And that was not a feeling she was accustomed to.

"Draco please. Not now. Not today." She pleaded into his eyes. "It's all very complicated... I just.. can't. It's too much right now." She rested her head on his shoulder. "Do you understand?"

And he did.

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AN..ahhhhhhhhhhhhh im sorry... i dont think that was one of my best... did it suck? sorry if it did.... did that even make sense??? lol... im sorry it was soo short... its really hard to get back into...the grooveee if ya kno wat i mean... lol.. itll get better with your help so review review review!!!


	12. Two Slip Ups?

A/N: woahhhh…im SO sorry i haven't updated this story in ages… but all that's gunna change because summer's back in town and free time is my middle name! lol.

Last chapter….

Hermione shook her head. Promise or no promise. There was absolutely no way she was getting on that horse. He didn't get it.. he didn't understand. Hell, Hermione didn't even understand it. All she knew was if she was to ride that horse, she would be frightened. And that was not a feeling she was accustomed to.

"Draco please. Not now. Not today." She pleaded into his eyes. "It's all very complicated... I just… can't. It's too much right now." She rested her head on his shoulder. "Do you understand?"

And he did.  
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They stood there together watching the horses for a few moments longer. Although Hermione had been extremely shaken up by Draco's sudden request, she found the longer she stayed with him, the less afraid she became.

'_It's so strange how I always feel serene when I'm with him..'_

The wind toyed with her hair. Draco seemed to follow it's lead and also began to slide his fingers through her strands.

'_Draco's being such a gentleman. And _me_….acting the way I did. I feel so bad. He must think I'm a complete idiot...'_

Hermione felt that an apology was in order...

"Draco," She turned to face him. "Despite my little display of…_unsureness_-"

"Oh I see," Draco teased. "Is that what we're going to call it?"

A small smile appeared on her face. By now she could usually tell when he was teasing. "Yes. That's _exactly_ what we're going to call it."

Draco chuckled.

"But really. Thank you for offering to let me ride them. I really wanted to you know. It's just that…."

Draco slid a comforting hand around her waist. As he did, Hermione shivered from a chill that went down her spine. "I understand, Hermione."

She smiled and laid her head back on his shoulder. _ 'Wow….if only Harry and Ron could see me no-'_

Hermione jumped in surprise. "Oh no!'

Thinking of Harry and Ron helped her to remember that she had forgotten about their letters. She had meant to owl them hours ago!

"What?" A concerned Draco asked, reacting to Hermione's jump. "What's the matter?"

"Ohh nothing," She began. "I just realized that I had forgotten to owl Ha-" Hermione stopped mid sentence. There was no way she could tell Draco what she was really about to say. She could already see it. He would get all upset that she was even _thinking_ about them and storm off in an angry huff. Then all the progress they've made today would be lost and she would probably go back to being referred to as Granger and he as Malfoy.

"You forgot to do what?" Draco was curious and Hermione had to think fast.

"Ohh…er…. you knowww…"

Draco raised his eyebrow at her. "No. I don't."

"Oh…ha ha …erm... I thought you did."

Draco was beginning to get suspicious.

"Parents!" she exclaimed nervously. "I just meant that I've forgotten to owl my parents. They asked me to owl them as soon as I got settled in and erm…I've just remembered that I've…erm… forgotten!"

Draco didn't look completely convinced. "So does that mean you want to head back then?"

"Yes please. Thanks for my tour of the grounds. It turned to be very eventful after all." She attempted to change the subject. "Though… you _could_ use a little practice being a guide. I hate to tell you this…. but you were sort of horrible."

It seemed Draco didn't notice. "Well excuse me Ms. _Regnarg_." Draco turned and began to walk towards the manor. "Although there are _many_ talents are on my resume as I'm sure you've heard, I'm afraid that '_tour guide extraordinaire'_ isn't one of them."

Hermione laughed. "Well…that's pretty clear. And you know what other talent I've heard you're lacking?" She began to speed up her pace.

"Which?"

"Let's call it….Sprinting! Seeing as how I so easily beat you earlier." Hermione took off in a full sprint. "And I'm about to do it again!" She called back as she flew into the trees.

Draco laughed in surprise. "But that's where _you're_ wrong." And with that he was off.

With in no time, Hermione found her self back at the manor. She had been expecting to have passed the enchanted grove on the way back, but surprisingly she didn't recall seeing it.

A few moments later, a panting Draco arrived.

"I….guess…you were…right."

"You sound surprised. Did you expect me to be wrong?" Hermione smirked. "Why Draco, you should have learned by now. The Great Hermione is never wrong."

Draco snorted. "Well I don't know about _that_. You only beat me that time-"

"_Both_ times." Hermione corrected proudly.

"Alright. _Both_ times." Draco repeated in a mocking tone. "And that was only because I _let_ you have a head start."

"_Let_ me?" Hermione's eyes widened in surprise. "Lucky for you Draco, I'm in a good mood. Especially since I just beat the quote-un-quote '_Slytherin Prince_' in two sprints."

Draco rolled his eyes. "Yea…whatever."

Hermione laughed. "Me:1… Draco:0"

As she opened the door to the manor, she remembered her question from earlier.

"Hey Draco?"

"Yea?" he answered as they moved towards the couches.

"Why didn't I pass the enchanted grove on the way back? I mean I know I didn't exactly notice it either on the way there but I was sure I would have-"

"Exactly."

Hermione was confused. "Come again?"

Draco looked pleased that he could explain something to Hermione that she didn't already know. "It's quite logical actually. Since you weren't paying attention on the way there, you didn't actually _know_ where it was located. So there for, it only makes sense that you didn't see it on the way back." Draco fell back onto the couch in a tired manner. "You simply didn't know where to look."

"So it was a safeguard from the spells on it?" She asked as she flopped down on the couch to join him.

"Exactly."

"Oh I see." Hermione paused. "Actually, now that I think about it…I've been to a place where spells similar to the ones on the grove were cast. Only… I believe they were much stronger."

"You don't say?" Draco looked intrigued. "And what's the name of the place you're speaking about?

"Oh its called Gr-" Hermione stopped abruptly. _'I can't believe I almost let that slip!'_

She began again. "It's called Green Terrace." This time, her lie flowed much smoother than before. "Well, to tell you the truth, I've never actually been there. It's just a place I've read about in a book."

"Oh really" She couldn't tell if he believed her or not. "Which book was this?"

"Ohhh I can't really recall..." Hermione began to rise from the couch. "After you read so many, the books just begin to blend together until you can't remember Hogwarts A History from 394 Ways to Levitate and Apparate."

"You've actually read a book like that?" Draco asked suspiciously. "I thought there were only _one_ way to levitate…let alone apparate."

By now, Hermione was nearly at the stairs. "Heh… well apparently there's more. 393 more to be exact!"

"Ummm…alright."

"Well Draco, I'm _dreadfully_ tired. I suppose those sprints took more out of me than I thought. So I think," She called from the top of the stairs. "That I'm going to take a nap. After all, a girl needs her beauty sleep. Well…see you later." And with that she closed her door.

Draco sat on the couch looking up at the place Hermione had stood only a few moments before wondering what exactly she was up to. He wasn't sure, but it seemed that when they were talking about Protection Spells, she had started to say something else. And again when they were near the stables…

Before he had a chance to continue his thoughts, he heard the sounds of his mother approaching.

"Hello Draco dear! How was the tour. Did you show Hermione a nice time?" She shot a glance in the direction of Hermione's room. "Oh don't tell me that you've gone and upset her. Draco you must remember that Hermione is our guest, not another one of our house maids. You mustn't treat her rudely like you do your other friends. Please don't-"

Draco rolled his eyes. "Mother don't worry. Hermione told me herself that she had a wonderful time. I haven't upset her at all. She simply went upstairs to…finish a letter to her parents." Draco wasn't so sure about that last part…but his mother didn't have to know that.

"Oh splendid!" She beamed. "Well… I'm off to the study. You know how grumpy I get when I miss my afternoon readings." His mother began to turn. "Oh and Draco, tonight at dinner I have a special announcement for you and Hermione."

"Okay mother. See you at dinner."

He watched his mother retreat until she descended the stairs to the study.

'_A surprise?'_

Draco wasn't sure whether to be excited or nervous. Last time his mother had a "surprise" for him" it turned out that she had decided to embark on a 3-city shopping spree in Paris, Cairo, and Tokyo and he was chosen to be her "lucky" guest. How that was supposed to be a surprise for _him_…one could only guess.

Draco shuddered at the memory.

'_But this time, she had said for me _and_ Hermione.'_ Draco felt his eyelids shutting. Hermione was right…all that sprinting _was_ pretty tiresome. _'So maybe…..maybe….this time will be…different'_

Just before he surrendered to sleep, a small smile surface on his lips.

A/N: Sooo there it is! Hopefully it wasn't too bad. And if it was…I apologize… I'm about 12 months rusty..lol….welll tell me you thoughts and I'll try to put them into next chapter…. Though I'm already pretty sure I know what I want to happen next….any suggestions are welcome :) THANKS!


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